[The speech below was given by Church Archon Michael Karloutsos in July, 2014 at the 42nd Biennial Clergy-Laity Congress in Philadelphia, which he co-chaired.]
Thank you all for participating in the 42nd Biennial Clergy-Laity Congress in Philadelphia! I was personally moved by the enthusiasm and passion exemplified throughout the Congress. Each and every one of you plays an important role not only in your home parish but in our Greek orthodox community as a whole. As I reflected on our theme “The Orthodox Christian Family: A Dwelling of Christ and A Witness of His Gospel,” I recalled a story of a young man, a son, a husband, a father of six who had recently come to America from Greece to seek opportunity that could only be found in the United States. Sixty years ago in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, in the Church of St. John the Baptist, this young man began his ministry as Greek Orthodox Priest. That storied ministry brought him and his family from Springfield, MA to Detroit, MI, where he tragically lost his beloved Presbytera Olga, who was only 33 years old. From Bayard, NE to Wilmington, NC where he ultimately retired. In total Father Michael served over a dozen parishes and communities across the United States.
This priest, better known to me as Pappou Michael, laid the foundation for his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren to participate in the life of the Church while understanding the sacrifices that were made and the challenges that were overcome.
(Father Alex, Michael, Xanthi, Anastasia, and Olga Karloutsos.)
I am a PK (“Priest’s Kid”). But my Dad, Father Alex, is also a PK which of course makes me a PGK (“Priest’s Grandkid”). I’m also the nephew of two priests, Father Peter (Danbury, CT) and Father Kosmas (Annapolis, MD), the brother-in-law of a priest, Father Constantine (Southampton, NY) and the cousin of a priest, Father Nikolas (Port Washington, NY). Not to mention I have a koumbaro who’s a priest, Father Christ (Broomall, PA) and my “Spiritual Nouno”, Father Byron (Palos Hills, IL) is also a priest.
Yes, there is absolutely something in the (Holy) water!
Being part of this incredible family legacy was often very difficult, especially when I realized that priesthood was not in my future. I loved the church, but where did I belong? This is something I struggled with for a long time. How would I serve the Church?
My shining example of how to serve the Church as a layperson is my Uncle Jimmy (James Karloutsos). Like his brothers, he too attended Hellenic College/Holy Cross but never entered the priesthood. Instead, he shared his talents through education, which ultimately led him back to HC/HC where he is the school’s Chief Operating Officer. My uncle found a way to serve.
(Michael, Anastasia, Michael Jr., Presbytera Xanthi, Metropolitan Elpidoforos, Father Alex, Presbytera Anastasia, Olga Palladino, Marc Palladino, Father Constantine Lazarakis, BOTTOM: Demetrios, Konstantina, Steven, Alexander, Joshua, Xanthi, Luca, Konstantina and Leo.)
We as laypeople participate by taking an interest. By stepping up! We welcome fellow congregants at the pangari, we hold the cloth at communion, we teach Sunday school, we work the souvlaki stand, we support those in need through Philoptochos or we spend our days off coaching GOYA basketball. We each do our part to make our Church great and to keep our community alive and thriving for generations to come. This is what my beautiful wife, Anastasia, and I do for our children, Alexander, Konstantina, Steven, Michael Jr., and our Godson Joshua. We find a way to serve.
We also participate by speaking up and acting out when we feel something is wrong. At the 1998 Clergy Laity Congress, I led a group of concerned Greek Orthodox Christians who burst in on the 34th Clergy Laity Congress in Orlando, FL to speak up in what has become known as the “Open Forum.” Not without some irony, sixteen years later I have had the distinct honor and privilege to serve as co-Chair of the 42nd Clergy laity Congress, where I’m proud that we held Open Forums of our own to ensure that dialogue and activism continue to be part of our Church experience. Life comes full circle, but our responsibility to “speak the truth in love” as the Apostle Paul reminds us never changes.
(My children: Stylianos (Steven), Konstantina, Michael Jr, Alexander, and Joshua.)
I want to thank my co-Chair, the amazing Anne Michals, for her partnership and trust. I want to thank His Eminence Metropolitan Evangelos for his spiritual guidance and friendship and His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios for providing our community with the steady, principled leadership that it so richly deserves. And, of course, I want to thank His All Holiness our Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew for his paternal love and exemplary sacrifice.
Finally, I want to thank the men, women, and children, priests, beloved presbyteres and laypeople alike for your incredible contributions in making the 42nd Biennial Clergy-Laity Congress in Philadelphia something we can all be proud of. Together we found a way to serve! Thank you!
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